Compare Credit Cards and Loans for Bad Credit

In the early days here at Send Me Dosh the intention has been to introduce all of the lenders across the UK that cater those with a bad (or non-existent) credit history. This has included lenders catering credit cards, guarantor loans, logbook loans, payday loans and so on. Naturally, there is considerable coverage of payday loans since this is the biggest market in the UK today. Lenders are as noted catered, although brokers and introducers carrying some level of popularity have also been introduced. Now that many of the introductions have been made the objective has been to group companies into individual comparison postings that are ranked by the best overall price and if need be by added features if there is a level field in the cost provided.

This post will list the various comparison postings that will allow you to compare loans for bad credit or compare credit cards for bad credit (there is just the single comparison there though). New companies are being added on a frequent basis and the objective will in time be to make each of these postings much more detailed, for instance looking at customer service and past consumer reviews. The comparison postings will split all of the lenders up with any such lender only appearing in a single comparison only. Although the rankings are composed by cost, it should be noted that cost isn’t everything and that you should also be looking at other qualities such as flexible terms, the ability to clear balances at any time, trade association membership etc.

Note: The total charge used in comparisons will calculate the monthly interest rate. Transfer fee calculations are not shown since lenders usually take away these charges from the funds sent. The particular rankings will factor transfer costs though and at a later date we will display separate charge breakdowns.

The extended 3 month term here should create a more manageable loan ahead of the usual monthly period. It was Oakam that came out on top here with a £37.50 per £100 charge (£12.5% monthly). They can of course be taken over further months if required. This lender does have issues though such as the lack of account login and SSL. You must also verify the application by phone that won’t be ideal for many. The recent 2012 lender Wizz Cash arrived in 2nd spot with a rate of 15.33%.

Cash4UNow arrived back in 2011, but they are a new addition to the site and have just took the top spot beating out Lending Stream who previously had the top rank with the aid of their transfer fee. With Cash4UNow the interest charge will be 30% for the single month, but over 6 months this charge cuts down to just below 15%.

There are just the 2 lenders battling out the 12 month payday loans sector that is an increasingly popular market with the general public who can spread larger amounts out over the entire year. Pounds to Pocket who reached the market first came out on top with a total charge over the 12 month term of £868.66 per £1000. The interest each month here is £72.39 (working out at 7.24%). However, their promo code trims this interest rate down to 6.98%. Quid who came in 2nd spot had a 22.3% rate.

There is a large range of payday lenders catered on this site. This comparison ranked the top 10 by cost with each participating lender catering full monthly terms. QuickQuid dominated this section for a long time, but have now been toppled by Vivus who offer a 0% payday loan on your first time using them (further loans are priced at 20% over the month). The QuickQuid rates are either 20%, 25% or 29.5% (rates are determined by credit score). Their promo turned these rates into 15%, 18.75% or 22.13%. These rates are competitive for monthly payday loans since the market average is around 30% of the loan sum (£30 per £100) and many lenders do of course add on expensive transfer fees. Just to add that Vivus wasn’t attached to the short term section since their daily rate over 7 days wasn’t very good, but they provide their best rate over the monthly term and so have made this section.

With great flexibility offered, the short term loan lenders will be attractive to those looking for perhaps some cash for a short break that will attract less interest with the smaller term involved. This comparison studied their 7 day cost per £100. Reddies Direct came in 1st with £6.52 (6.52%) whilst Wonga arrived in the 2nd spot at £12.78 (12.78%) that is then cut down with their promo code to £6.90 (6.9%). 6-7% is a great rate over a 7 day term.

There isn’t a particularly large range of credit card providers within this niche to choose from, but each of them introduced on this site made this comparison. The Aquis Visa Card from Vanquis Bank came in top spot with 29.8% APR that was followed closely by the Barclaycard Initial standing at 29.9% APR. Those are of course the direct providers themselves. When it comes to the branded cards, the Argos Credit Card did have the best rate at 29.9% APR, but they have now raised this rate and so have made way for Granite.

There isn’t too much to split the doorstep lenders. In fact 4 of them came out with the same 7.5% monthly rate. This arises from a 32 Week (8 Month) term whereby a £60 per £100 charge would be in place. Provident and Greenwood (same company) came out joint 1st though based on their added features in place. They for example have the highest number of agents (11,000), they are the most experienced services (stretching back to 1880) and offer a possible £2500 for existing customers. Provident is the most popular, but the Greenwood service is matched in every regard. All such doorstep loan sites are underdeveloped though, with not a single lender for example providing online account management.

Amigo Loans (previously FLM Loans) did carry the top spot with their 49.9% APR (variable) figure, but they have recently been taken over by Guarantor Loans Online at 47.9% APR. The GLO 12 month cost translates to £228.44 per £1000 that has a monthly interest rate of just 1.9%. Guarantor loans are as you can see very cheap compared to other bad credit loans over the full year. In the guarantor payday loan section The Quick Cash Club now takes the top spot now that FLM Quick has closed. It is evident that the once dominant FLM empire has been losing their edge in recent years.

Logbook loans are in popular demand with there being less strict demands in place from the participating lenders since they are secured loans. Car Cash Point was previously in the top spot, but they lost this to Easy Logbook Loans. As an update, Varooma have now took the top spot. A charge of £668 per £1000 will be required over 52 weeks. This equates to just 5.57% of the loan sum each month. Logbook loans do get expensive over long terms and so if the ability is there then it would always be recommended to settle the balance early. It is always worth mentioning that you should be extra responsible with these loans since failure to pay them gives the lender the legal right to take your car (or other vehicle away).